A post shared by Mona V. Elsness (@femalewellness) on May 18, 2017 at 6:53am PDT

“Unwrapping a baby”

This clip was shared on the Female Wellness Instagram page – a Norway-based profile that focuses on women’s overall health. The caption posted alongside the video gives a rundown of amazing facts about en caul births, and how this gentle arrival can benefit babies’ health and promote better overall outcomes for mums too.

“Unwrapping a baby. What a way to welcome this little miracle into the world!” the post begins, before explaining just how special and rare this kind of delivery is.

During an en caul birth, a baby is lifted from its mothers’s uterus, still neatly snuggled up in their amniotic sac. They are completely contained, as they were in utero, and it’s jaw-dropping stuff. Wikipedia tell us that this amazing phenomenon occurs in “fewer than 1 in 80,000 births”, so it’s hardly surprising that when these rare births do happen, we sit up and take notice.

Caul and en caul babies, however, are not sitting up and taking notice..! Many remain tucked up in the amniotic sac, still surrounded by amniotic fluid, limbs folded in and placenta still attached. #SoCosy

Caul vs En Caul

Caul babies are delivered with part of their amniotic sac covering their face or body. These babies – born with a physical connection to their life in utero – are sometimes referred to as being born with a veil or shirt or helmet. Different parts and different amounts of the birth membrane can attach itself to a baby in various ways in a caul birth.

En caul babies, however, remain completely contained in their amniotic sac after birth. Doctors or midwives will then pierce the membrane and the baby is freed, getting its first experience of the outside world – the relief of having some extra room to move.

Most of these very rare “en caul” babies are premmies, and experts say that ultimately planning “en caul” deliveries for very early babies – and leaving them in their amniotic sac for a little longer after the birth – could result in much better outcomes for vulnerable infants.